Books about computer-mediated communication and the Internet now fill
many shelves in most bookstores. Unfortunately few provide analyses of
how computer networks are changing the fundamental nature of human interaction,
since most of the books are about how to get on-line, surf the Web, and
cash in on the Internet. CyberSociety is a thoughtful antidote to
the Web mania sweeping the world.

Surprisingly, Stephen Jones' collection of essays barely mentions the
Web, highlighting one of the major problems with traditional methods of
publishing, marketing, and reviewing books. A book published in 1995 was
probably written in 1994, and in 1994 few people used the Web. Given that
the technology of computer-mediated communication is changing so rapidly,
almost any book in this area is outdated prior to its release. (E-publishing
appears to be the only solution to instant disposability. I could update
this review instantly if I wanted to, but this book will soon be out of
print, never to be updated.)

Since I've done little else but create Web
pages for the past three years, I was tempted to simply return the
book when asked to review it. However, as I started to read it I found
much of it quite relevant, particularly as I was in the middle of constructing
a course on how to use new
media for criminological research and distance education instruction.
CyberSociety provided a number of thoughtful insights on how technologically-based
communication might be redefining selves and "community," and
handling problems of on-line deviance.

Several basic components of the Internet discussed in the book, email
and newsgroups,
are actually used much more than they were three years ago. Video games
and virtual reality are only now making their way to the Internet, where
multi-user gaming
and simulations are changing the very nature of computer games. Strangely,
chat is not
discussed in CyberSociety, but many of the points made about MUDs
and newsgroups are equally relevant to IRC chat. Also, audio chat and desktop
videoconferencing have emerged since publication of the book.

Particular chapters in the book were quite insightful. Ted Friedman's
contribution on computer [End page 21] games is a good example. Given that until recently
most games were sole player versus the computer, the types of interactivity
were limited. Many games are simply interactive cinema, in which the game
player must first solve puzzles or mysteries before being permitted to
move to the next scene. MystTM
and the Police QuestTM
series are examples. As the genre evolved puzzles became more elaborate,
multiple paths and outcome possibilities were added, and finally, multi-player
capabilities were added. Such games might have value in teaching investigation
or forensic courses, but often lack adequate scientific knowledge of real
procedures. On the other hand, simulations like Sim
CityTM, offer a fully immersive
experience, in which the game player merges his or her identity with the
city as organic system in dynamic equilibrium. Talcott Parsons would love
it! The city even mirrors real world crime problems, but unfortunately
has an inadequate criminological understanding of crime causation and cessation.
Alas, Friedman makes no attempt to analyze the most popular form of computer/video
games, a genre I call "shoot-em ups." These may provide another
example of what Twitchell called "preposterous violence," be
"hardwiring"
the video game generation to be complacent about deviance, and/or holding girls
back from using computers, depending on your point of view.

Margaret McLaughlin et al's piece "Standards of Conduct on Usenet,"
was quite enlightening, demonstrating how community boundaries are created
by defining and enforcing on-line standards against deviant behavior. If
one has spent much time in the newsgroups (or on mailing lists or listservs),
it is inevitable that as a "newbie" you will violate a group
rule and be censured. You might even be symbolically terminated or executed.
McLauglin was able to locate specific examples of netiquette violations
in a number of major categories including: bandwidth waste, ethical violations,
inappropriate language, violations of networkwide conventions, etc. So
what type of community is newsnet? While many computer pundits celebrate
the emergence of new mind communities emerging on the Net, in reality,
these communities are often dominated by a few hardcore users while most
remain lurkers. In addition, newsnet communities are ephemeral and often
disappear with the demise of group leaders. On the other hand, without
firm rules on posting and responding, many newsgroups have become virtual
Spam pits.

Newsgroups are not the only Internet realm forced to create and enforce
rules of decent behavior. Thievery has emerged in 3D chat spaces like WorldsAwayTM.
According to Robert
Rossney, chat participants interacting as avatars
have responded with vigilantism to those who steal the valuable heads and
tokens from newbies. The computer programmers who created the simulation
are enjoying themselves as a [End page 22] real community takes shape, develops its own
norms, and attempts to get its citizens to follow them.

Elizabeth Reid is the expert on MUDs
and their equivalents: MUCKs, MUSHes, and MOOs. There are a number of similarities
with all M worlds, including their emphasis on fantasy, use of text-based
scenarios, multiple player role playing, etc. Some worlds feature sex and
violence, others do not. In some individuals vie against other individuals
to move to higher levels, in others only collaborative group effort leads
to success. Reid focuses on the creation and recreation of identity through
textual interaction.

There is certainly a vast potential or the use of such technologies
in active learning environments, a largely untapped realm within criminal
justice education. Until recent, it was mostly English and Writing faculty
who were using MUDs. Given the strong emphasis on creative writing which
is at the core of the MUDs, this was a natural alliance. At the University
of Florida, MUDs were set up to serve 2,500 students per semester in introductory
composition and literature courses.

Other essays in this collection are not as important. Several attempt
comparisons: video games are compared to New World travelogues, while Hobbes'
Leviathan is used as a model for analysis of Usenet . Also, I was not sure
of the point of Aycock and Buchignani's "E-Mail Murders." The
event described: the rampage murders committed by a Canadian faculty member,
Valery Fabrikant, following his rejection for tenure and posting of his
case favorably on Usenet, is fascinating. The events were discussed in
several Canadian newsgroups for months. However, the impact of this case
pales in comparison to the response throughout the Internet to the O.J.
Simpson murders and trials.

As CyberSociety points out, Internet users weaned on anonymous
game playing have turned to networked computers. MOOs, MUDs, chat rooms,
and networked versions of games like Dungeons
and DragonsTM or QuakeTM
helped to create an expectation of the Internet as a world of competitive
fun with people one need never meet face to face. The OJ trial became a
medium for many to test their detective or legal skills against other gameplayers.
As mediated characters, OJ, the courtroom attorneys, and key witnesses
became 'cool' icons for a postmodern generation raised on media constructions
of celebrity. However, like some who play games, Internet OJ trial fans
occasionally took themselves too seriously, thinking things they said might
or ought to influence the real trial's outcome. [End page 23]